Yoroiden Normality
by Lindir
Summary: Troopers going to school, with regular families, as friends, with no ties to the Yoroiden...life is still crazy, even in a normal world with this crew.
1. Friendship

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Disclaimer: Yoroiden Samurai Troopers belongs to its respective owners. 

Friendship  
A Yoroiden Samurai Trooper Fanfiction

By Katanashi (Inazuma@cephiro.com)

Note: This is an alternate universe fanfiction.  
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It was supposedly a quiet spring weekend afternoon at the Yagyu residence. Five high school students currently resided there while attending a local high school, because they lived too far away to commute on a daily basis. But as of the present time, only four were actually physically there. 

"Why can't I get this channel?" groused Shu, his face twisted with irritation. "The show starts in five minutes!" He threw down the remote in disgust.

"Take it easy, Shu!" Shin was quick to pacify his already steaming friend. "Touma, take a look at it, can you?" 

The dark haired sixteen-year old hardly glanced up from the book. "I thought it was fixed last week, Shin. Are you sure it's broken again or is the remote just set on VCR instead of TV?" 

Shin shrugged. "All I know is, Shu is right- for once," he added, ignoring Shu's furiously indigant "WHAT!?" He pressed a few buttons on the remote. "It's definitely not working, Touma. Just try, please?" 

Touma sighed. "Fine, fine, give it to me," he grumbled, reluctantly setting his book down on the table, carefully marking the page he had been on. Taking the remote that Shin offered to him, he shifted his position on the off-white couch he had been sitting on so he could face the TV and VCR. 

Shu had flopped down on the chair opposite to Touma and was scowling darkly. "I can't BELIEVE this!" he complained. "I'm going to be missing **Yoroiden** for the third straight day! Friday I had an extra judo class, Nasuti grounded me Saturday for stealing that cake she made, and now the TV isn't working! It's like the world is out to get me!"

"That in itself would be an impossibility, Shu," someone announced derisively from near the door. "If the world _was_ out to get you, you'd probably be on your knees squalling." The speaker was standing in the doorway between the kitchen and living room, his blond hair pressed neatly, wearing a fashionable-- and expensive looking-- pair of khakis and a white cotton dress shirt. They draped loosely on a lean frame hardened by years of kendo. Sharp grey eyes that glinted with an almost dangerous, I-dare-you light and a superior little smirk completed the picture. 

"Seiji!" Shin grimaced at the other's choice of words. It was going to be hard enough for him to calm Shu down without Seiji's well-aimed barbs interfering. 

"What?" Seiji put on his most innocent face. "It's not my fault that Shu's really a huge teddy bear underneath that ferocious exterior- right?" He smiled sweetly at Shu, whose face had blackened so much, it could very well be mistaken for a sudden eclipse, despite the fact that his face had already been dark from irritation before. 

"Seeeeiiiiijjjiiii…." Shin growled under his breath. The calmest and most reasonable of them, he nevertheless was starting to lose his temper. Seiji could be _so_ infuriating. He was naturally inclined towards peace and hated fighting and violence altogether, but many times Seiji's remarks had tempted him- oh, he had been SO tempted!- to slug him in the jaw to shut him up.

Unfortunately for Seiji, Shu had no such reservations. Striding forward, he grabbed Seiji's perfectly ironed white shirt and lifted him clear off the ground by at least a foot and a half. "Say to my face, pretty boy," he snarled, shaking the dangling blond teenager as he spoke in a threatening manner.

Seiji tossed his head haughtily, seemingly unaware of the potential danger he was in. "Gladly. You are really a huge-"

"Seiji," an authoritative voice rang out from the front door. "Shut up. Shu, put him down." 

Everyone except Touma turned simultaneously towards the general vicinity from where the sound originated. The sight of a tall, well-built young man with black hair and deep dark bluish eyes wearing simple jeans and an oversize T-shirt was what their eyes were greeted with. He carried a plain black bookbag that was slung casually over his left shoulder.

"He's home early today from GameMaster," Shin commented softly to Touma, too quietly for anyone else to hear.

"With Ryo, that's pretty impressive, considering he's an arcade nut," Touma answered with a snicker.

With a final frown, Shu released his grip on Seiji's shirt without bothering to lower him the extra eighteen inches to which he had been elevated to. Luckily, Seiji was as agile as he was good at pushing Shu's buttons and landed easily on his feet, smoothing the wrinkles on his shirt with a peevish expression on his face.

"I spent half an hour ironing this shirt this morning!" he fumed disgustedly. "And on top of that, it's a Polo shirt! I can't believe Shu wrecked it--"

"Oh, stop your griping, Seiji," muttered Touma, exasperated. "Your precious shirt will be fine after an extra ironing. Besides, you're aggravating Ryo."

Seiji glowered at Touma- or rather, his back, since Touma was still occupied by the TV and VCR. But slowly, as his mind began to clear of the red haze, he realized that Touma actually had a pretty good point- it would be a really bad idea to set Ryo off. Ryo, although he had a big heart, also had a temper that was as hot as the core of the sun.

Shin breathed a big sigh of relief. Seiji/Shu arguments had a tendency to turn to fistfights, which almost always resulted in damage to the house itself. That would lead to Nasuti, their landlady and a sort of surrogate mother to them all (as she had proved by successfully grounding Shu), blowing her stack at all five of them. Now that was an experience that their little group would love to never repeat. Nasuti had a tongue as sharp as a blacksnake whip.

"Hey Touma, whatcha doin' with the TV? You'd better not mess it up again," Ryo said jokingly. 

"Very funny, Ryo. Shu's missing **Yoroiden** again due to technical problems, so I'm just taking a look to see if there's just a problem with the settings."

"Yoroiden? That's the oldest show that's even still playing," Ryo observed.

"It's a good show," Shu snapped, sensing an insult coming from Ryo. Unlike Seiji, who was surprisingly clear headed- probably due to his ten years of kendo training- Shu pretty much was like a rocket that had been lit. Once it was going, it didn't stop until it ran out of fuel or met something it couldn't knock down. 

"Nobody said it wasn't," Shin said soothingly, trying desperately to cool down the situation. 

"Well, if I can't watch it, that means I have to go online to find the tapes. You know how much they cost? Thirty bucks each! It's a rip off!"

Shin looked very much like a cat who'd been cornered by three Dobermans. "Eh…maybe you can tape it off the TV," he suggested lamely. He regretted his words almost instantly.

"TAPE IT?!" Shu turned to him, his eyes incredulous. "How the hell can I tape the stupid show when I can't even get the channel to work?! You're supposed to be practical and smart, Shin! Don't you know there's no way to tape a show if you don't get a channel?!"

"Actually, you _can_ technically tape a show without getting the channel on the TV," Touma remarked absently as he fiddled with the TV controls.

Shu immediately ceased his ranting. "Really? You can tape it for me?" he asked hopefully.

"I said _technically_," Touma replied, not looking up as he continued his work. "If there was no way to get the cable to split, then you can connect it to the VCR instead of the TV. But if the cable isn't working period, then of course there's no way to tape it."

"ARGH!!!!" Shu threw up his hands in frustration. "You know what this means, don't you? I'm going to have NO IDEA what is going on in that stupid show when I watch it tomorrow!"

"Providing, of course, that you can watch it, tomorrow," Touma said. He tossed the remote onto the table and stood up, stretching. "Sorry, Shu, I can't fix it. I think the cable's jacked somewhere. We'll have to call the repair guy."

"If it's so stupid, why are you watching it?" Seiji jibed.

"You wanna get creamed, pretty boy?" Shu started menacingly towards Seiji again, only to be intercepted by Touma. 

"Take it easy, Shu!" Touma said firmly. "It's not going to help you to beat the crap out of him! And then Nasuti will be kickin' our butts again!"

Ryo stretched languidly and sat down in a vacated armchair. "Well, if we can't watch cable, let's watch something else," he suggested.

"Like what?" Shin wondered. "We left all our tapes at our homes. Our parents wouldn't allow us to bring them."

Ryo smiled mysteriously, then leisurely reached into his schoolbag and pulled out two tapes. "Parents can't govern everything, Shin. I rented these from the video store on my way home."

Seiji smiled broadly. "Ryo, you're brilliant," he told the other with unabashed admiration. Ryo flushed, but gave a cocky grin nonetheless. 

"**X: The Movie**, and the **Rurouni Kenshin** OAV. Anime again, Ryo?" Shin raised an eyebrow questionably at him.

Ryo shrugged. "You gotta admit there's nothing else out there," he pointed out. "Besides, X and Kenshin are among the best animes."

Shin sighed. Fate must have deemed that he be converted to anime freakism despite his natural distaste of it. His sister back home loved it and watched it all the time, and so did all of his roomates. Which meant, of course, that he was stuck with anime all the time, vacations or school. Glancing around at his quartet of companions, he said, "I don't know what you four see in it, but I'll stand it."

"Thanks, Shin," Seiji said. He turned to Shu, who was yelling at an impassive Touma. "Hey, Shu! Touma! Which one first, X or Kenshin?"

Shu stopped yelling as if someone had just flipped his OFF switch. "X? Kenshin?" He bounded over eagerly, leaving a bemused Touma in his wake. "As in, the animes? Awesome!" He enthusiastically grabbed X and popped it into the VCR before plopping onto the couch next to Seiji. "Isn't X just the greatest, Seiji?"

"No qualms there," the blond kendoist acknowledged.

Shin rolled his eyes and elbowed Touma, who was reclining on his right. "Shu can be ready to murder Seiji one minute and the next minute be his best friend. Twisted logic is running rampant," he commented.

Touma cast the pair a casual glance before turning back to Shin. "It's the same with all of us, Shin. Are you still mad at Shu? Or Seiji?"

Shin shook his head. "Nah. Neither of them ever mean anything bad. It's just, they're always so downright _mean_ to each other. I just don't get that. How can you be friends with someone you're intentionally baiting all the time?"

Ryo shrugged. "I know it's kind of strange, but that's just the way it works. I mean, it's like we beat each other up, but we help bandage each other's injuries later. You know, that sort of thing."

"That made absolutely no sense," Touma said with a laugh. "But somehow, I think I understand what you're trying to say. Let me see if I can explain." He scratched his head absently. "We're friends, and that's how we know we don't really mean what we say. I can yell at you, and you might take it the wrong way, but that doesn't change what's underneath. True friends are always going to be friends, no matter what happens." 

"But Seiji's always making Shu mad!"

"What's a friend that you can't tease for a little fun once in a while?" Ryo asked. "If I called you a poof, would you care?"

"Yes."

"Oh. Sorry."

"Well, what are friends for?" Touma asked practically. "You might tease each other, but only to a certain extent. Seiji was poking a bit of fun at you last night when he joked that you'd slipped while cooking and that there were eggshells in the food. But everyone laughed. I don't think you minded at all."

"Friends are more than that," Ryo scoffed. "I know you guys probably hate your kid sisters or something, but mine's my best friend."

"Really? I didn't even know you had a sister," Shin said, surprised.

Ryo laughed. "Gomen. I don't talk about her too much, but I'll show you her picture later. We're only a year apart."

"I'm an only child," admitted Touma. "But I wish I had a brother or sister."

Shin let out a growl, remembering all too well his own siblings. "You don't want one."

"See? I know Seiji was ready to commit homicide once too, because his younger sister made him so mad. But my sister's cool. She and I talk a lot, we go out for food, and we hang out. But she listens, mostly. That's what makes us best friends."

"She's there for you when you need her," Touma said. "I guess that's what friends are for too."

"That's what friends are for," Shin repeated, thinking to himself. Yes, that's what friends were for. When one was not strong enough, there were four there to help.

Ryo slid down a bit in his chair. "Anyway, what really makes us friends is just the fact that we're being friends. We don't leave each other high and dry, and we like to hang out with each other. I mean, being friends is more important than having friends."

"Ryo?"

"What, Touma?"

"Shut up. The movie's starting."

"Che. You're an idiot-- the credits are always so boring." But Ryo's face quirked into a half grin as he complied.

As the opening credits to the movie rolled, Shin glanced around. Ryo was slouching in his armchair, sucking on a lollipop. Touma sat perfectly still, mesmerized by the images on the TV. And Seiji and Shu? The infamous duo was laughing and pointing at a character on the screen, commenting on the appearance. 

"Wow! Kamui's eyes are huge! They're as big as Kotori's!"

"Yeah! And he's a guy and Kotori's a girl!"

"Well, of course Kotori's a girl, moron! What kind of guy would have long blond hair and wear a pink nightie on top of that?!"

"What! You callin' me stupid? You're asking for a beating, pretty boy!"

"Stop calling me a pretty boy!"

And they were off again, shouting and arguing until their voices drowned the movie out. Ryo and Touma were on their feet and yelling at the two of them to quit their fighting.

"It's not my fault you ARE a pretty boy!"

"If I had my shinai, I'd beat the crap out of you before you knew what hit you!"

"Seiji, I'm sure that's against your kendo code…"

"Oh, I'd know what hit me, because you just told me-- your shinai, you idiot!"

"Who's the idiot here, huh?!"

"WILL YOU TWO JUST SHUT UP?!" Ryo bellowed, getting red in the face.

Watching the scene before him, Shin had the queerest feeling. It was a warmth that seemed to spread all over his body, making his toes tingle with glee and gently tugging the corners of his mouth up in a delighted smile.

He began to laugh, softly at first, then escalating into a near fit. He laughed until his sides hurt and his face was streaked with tear stains. 

__

Friends, he thought. _Being friends. That's what friendship is all about._

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Author's Notes: I did take quite a few liberties here, the biggest being that Ryo had a sister. This fanfic is a part of what I call the "Normal" Yoroiden universe. It's a take on what the Troopers might be like if they had not been called to the Yoroiden (armor legend). It has quite a few new characters, and some of them are Ryo's sister and also his father.

Comments and feedback always appreciated. Ja ne!  
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	2. Shiriau (To Befriend)

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Disclaimer: Yoroiden Samurai Troopers belongs to its respective owners. 

Yoroiden Normality: Part 2

Shiriau (To Befriend)  
A Yoroiden Samurai Trooper Fanfiction  
by Katanashi (Inazuma@cephiro.com)

Note: This is an alternate universe fanfiction.  
__________________________________________ 

* * * * *

"Hey, Ryo." Shin knocked on his friend's door before entering tentatively. "Didn't you say you'd show me something?"

Ryo stared at him blankly for a moment before comprehension dawned. "Oh yeah! Sorry, sorry, but I got kind of distracted, you know?"

Shin laughed. "Staring at Anya-san's picture again, weren't you?" The words came out in an amused manner as he surveyed the scattered photos on Ryo's bed.

Ryo grinned sheepishly, an embarassed blush creeping up over his face. "She's cute, alright?" he said defensively.

"Really," Touma drawled from the doorway. Neither Shin nor Ryo had even noticed his presence, a fact that Touma attributed to the relaxed atmosphere. He found Ryo's infatuation with the pretty upperclassman-- or rather, upperclasswoman-- almost foolish in a way, but he knew all too well himself that he was guilty of the same thing. Touma wasn't inclined towards dry, cutting remarks, but it was simply because he was intellectual, and he much preferred facts to emotion. "What was he going to show you, Shin?"

"His sister's picture, remember?"

"Ah." Touma nodded sagely. "I remember." He plopped himself onto Ryo's bed and gave the owner an expectant glance. "Well, we're waiting."

Ryo gave him a cross look. "You make it sound like a show," he said in annoyance.

"Even if I did, I know it's not, and I'm sure Shin thinks the same way," Touma said. "So rest assured that we're not going to turn it into a national TV thing."

Ryo looked far from appeased, but stood up and walked to the rosewood dresser. Opening the top drawer, he rummaged around before pulling out a photo album and handing it to Shin. "This is where I keep all the pictures of me and Miko," he said somewhat gruffly.

Shin ran his fingers lightly over the worn leather cover. It had been cared for, but there were cracks in the leather, and the edges were well worn. Opening it, he glanced through the photos inside with unconcealed interest. "She looks like you," he said quietly. "But she's almost…well, she's almost delicate."

"That she is not," Ryo said with a laugh. "If anything, she beats me up more than I have ever beaten anyone."

"Now that's saying something," Touma commented. Ryo was an accomplished martial artist; it was his greatest joy and hobby. He had studied both Aikido and Kendo when he was younger. At the school, he was taking advantage of the diversity and learning Kung-Fu.

"Aw, Miko isn't a wimp," Ryo said in defense of his sister. "She's tough. She used to learn Aikido along with me, but then she got interested in other things."

"So she doesn't do martial arts anymore?" Shin asked.

Ryo shook his head. "Not on a regular basis, but she's still into sports. She plays volleyball and goes running in the mornings. Plus, she plays the violin, and she likes to draw for hours on end."

"What about school?" 

"Smarter than me, that's for sure," Ryo said wryly. "I'm a class above her, and most of the time she's the one helping me instead of the other way around. She actually likes school-- I can't believe it. It's a torture chamber to me."

"She's very different than you," Shin observed.

"It's true," Touma agreed. "You can't sit still for a minute, and you go off into daydreams every other second. Not to mention you hate school with a vengeance and your scrawl could be considered artwork in itself, due to its extensive messiness."

Ryo's ears turned red. "We're not that different," he protested. The way they were talking about him, he sounded like a real loser.

"I'm sure you're not," Shin reassured him. "But even siblings can be as different as day and night."

"You know that statistically, the most differences are noted--" Touma started.

"Facts schmacts," Seiji snorted from the door. He strode in with a dignified air. "Honestly, Touma, facts are true, but they're boring. Why not learn something more variable?"

"Facts can be variable," Touma pointed out sensibly.

"That's true," Shin said. "When one is proven wrong."

"And that happens, oh, once every few gazillion centuries. You are such a bookworm," Seiji said, shaking his head. "You need to get out more. I mean, your skin is practically white. Nobody would know you from an albino rat, except for the fact that you obviously aren't a rat." Shin rolled his eyes at Seiji's absolutely retarded logic.

Touma looked hurt. "I like books, ok?" he muttered, obviously wounded by Seiji's condescending attitude.

"Sorry, sorry," Seiji said lazily. "I didn't mean it that way. Hey, why don't you come to kendo with me sometime? Or go to Kung-fu with Ryo?"

"Because your stupid classes are always in the wrong time slots," Touma said snappishly. He jumped off the bed with a scowl. "I'm really not as delicate as you'd think, Seiji. I don't look like Ryo's kid sister over there."

"Hey, take that back," Ryo said, his eyes narrowing. "Don't talk about Miko that way."

"I didn't say anything bad about her," Touma said, his nerves starting to fray dangerously. "And anyway, your sister does look delicate. She doesn't look like she can handle carrying a book."

Shin sucked in his breath at Touma's last statement. That was really going to set Ryo off. "Um, how about some ice-cream, guys?" he offered, trying to desperately change the mood. He half-noticed in the back of the mind that the room smelled somewhat like candy, or chocolate.

Ryo cast Touma a dark look. "Sure," he muttered. As he headed out the door, he brushed by Touma a bit roughly. "Let's go get some, Touma." There was no room for argument, and Touma reluctantly followed.

"He's dead," Seiji commented to Shin. Touma caught his words and winced. Shin noticed and shot Seiji a severe look, effectively quieting the kendoist until Touma had retreated out of hearing range.

Seiji scowled at Shin. "What was that all about?" he demanded. "I wasn't doing anything! I was just making an observation!"

Shin rubbed his temples, wondering how Seiji ever managed to get around with his painfully blunt stupidity. "Seiji, that's not even an observation. It's an opinion."

"Same thing, right? It doesn't make a difference; Touma really got Ryo mad."

Shin gave him a withering look. "Oh, shut up, Seiji."

* * * * *

Touma, meanwhile, was trying to cover as little distance as possible, so to extend the time that he was whole and well. Not that he really thought Ryo would knock him around, but still, it was obvious how much he cared for his sister. 

"How many bruises?" he joked weakly as he walked down the stairs. Below him, Ryo was waiting impatiently.

"You really think I'd beat you up for that?" Ryo asked, surprised.

"Well, I can tell, you care about your sister a lot…" Touma began. He stopped when he saw the hurt look on Ryo's face. "I mean…" he let the sentence trail of lamely. He felt like a total idiot for misjudging Ryo in such a way.

Ryo shrugged and gave him a slight smile. "I guess I had that coming," he admitted. He started to walk towards the kitchen again. In two long strides, Touma had caught up and was walking side-by-side with Ryo. "I love Miko a lot," Ryo continued. "And I sure as heck won't let any guy hurt her. But I can't keep her from the world, you know?"

"Afraid I don't," Touma returned mildly. 

Ryo laughed. "What I mean is," he explained. "She has to learn to be independent. I can't be there all the time to protect her. She's got to be able to take of herself. If some guy insults her when she's a kid, then that's my responsibility to make him take it back. But she's, what…" Ryo counted his fingers. "She's fifteen now. She can take care of herself just fine."

"She's not here to defend herself, though," Touma pointed out. "Doesn't that mean it's your obligation to defend her?"

"Well, that's ok. I know you, and you wouldn't say that to her in her face." Ryo grinned. "Besides, Seiji's an idiot. If I beat anyone up, it would be him, not you. I know you didn't mean to insult her." 

By now, they'd finally reached the refridgerator. Ryo rummaged past the frozen peas and chicken, before pulling himself out with a sigh. "Shoot," he murmered. "Shuu must have eaten all the ice-cream." He checked the trash can. Sure enough, an empty Dreyers' chocolate ice-cream container rested on top. 

"Ryo…"

"What?"

"Am I really such a bookworm?" Touma asked in a small voice.

Ryo could have laughed aloud at Touma's expression. He looked like a little boy who had been caught with a hand in the cookie jar and was awaiting punishment. But he sensed that Touma was serious in asking the question, and he wasn't a person to joke at someone else's expense. 

"Well…" Ryo thought for a bit, picking his worlds carefully. "Yes, you are, but not in a bad way." He scuffed his foot into the floor, trying to think of the nicest way to say things. "You're really smart, you like books, and more often than not you've got your nose buried in some novel. I mean, the facts are, Touma, you are a bookworm. That's just the way you are."

Touma's frame seem to sag. "Thanks," he muttered. His tone indicated anything but thanks.

"Hey! I wasn't done, you idiot!" Ryo exclaimed. 

"Aren't idiots stupid?" Touma asked bitterly. "So I'm not smart either, am I?"

"Oh, shut up!" Ryo said, exasperated. "Idiots can be smart. It's the dorks that are stupid!" Touma's eyebrows shot up at Ryo's rather quirky definitions. Ryo, fortunately, didn't notice, and even if he did, he wouldn't have cared. "Well, what I was going to say was, that's the way you are, yeah, but that's the way we like you! I mean, we're all different, Touma. That's why we have so much fun, you know? What fun would it be if we were all the same?"

"Be interesting."

"Bo-ring." Ryo drew out the syllables with derision. "Then we'd all dress the same. Meaning, we'd all wear Seiji's perfect Polo shirts. See if you can picture Shuu in that. Or Seiji in one of Shuu's holey T-shirts that he loves so much. Or Shin in any one of my outfits."

Touma tried. The impeccably dressed Seiji in a T-shirt with more holes than cloth, baggy denim jeans, and scuffed, mud-crusted sneakers. The wear-them-until-they're-useless Shuu in a neatly ironed white shirt with perfectly creased tan slacks and shiny leather shoes, hair slicked and polished. The casual but trendy Shin in a bright red shirt with big yellow smiley face on the back and royal blue tech pants. Touma couldn't help laughing; the images conjured in his mind were so ridiculous. Ryo, too, began to laugh as his own words took shape.

"I think Seiji would absolutely die before being caught in public, Shuu would be whining and pulling at the shirt and pants, and Shin would be greatly embarassed," Touma managed to get out, still trying to control his laughter. 

"I don't know," Ryo said wryly. "I'd really like to see Seiji in Shuu's clothes someday. His stuff is so freaking perfect. I mean, he never even has a wrinkle on any of his clothes."

Touma shrugged. "That's Seiji for you," he said philosophically. "It's his special talent."

"I always thought his talent was in kendo," Ryo observed. A grin flitted across his face. "Although I really can't say the same for his grades sometimes."

"He's just lazy," Touma said with a laugh. He eyed his friend. "I believe it would be safe to say the same of you."

Ryo had the good grace to blush. "Well, yeah, I sit around doing nothing sometimes," he admitted. "But Seiji fits the lazy bill better than me. He doesn't even do his homework sometimes, but he'll still get A's. I swear, it's not fair sometimes. I'll be up until midnight studying while I see him asleep at nine, and when we get our tests back, he has a higher grade than me. I mean, I do get lazy sometimes, but at least I try, you know?" Then he remembered who he was talking to. "Oh, forget it," he muttered, suddenly feeling stupid. "You don't really need to try either. Your brain just soaks it all up like a sponge does to water."

Touma didn't answer for a moment, but when he did, his voice was softly reflective. "Is that what you think of me, Ryo?" he asked in a hushed tone. It wasn't really a question. "I suppose the others think the same way too." 

Ryo gulped. It sounded like he'd really hurt Touma with those last few words.

Touma continued, his head lowered so his hair was swept over his eyes. "I can't say I work exceptionally hard," he said emotionlessly. "I can say that I'm considered extremely talented. But that's all it is; talent. I do work hard, and sometimes I struggle with concepts. My grades don't come easy, Ryo. I earn them; they're not handed to me on a silver platter. I may have talent, but talent can go nowhere without hard work." Touma lifted his head. "Now, Seiji, on the other hand…"Ryo was half-shocked, half-relieved to see his friend's deep, sapphire-like eyes fairly dancing with laughter. "Seiji," Touma continued, "Is going to find out eventually that he can't bum his way through college, or even high-school."

"Seiji probably could," Ryo said with a roll of his eyes. "He's pretty smart."

Touma shook his head. "Let him be lazy. He'll learn his lesson eventually."

"You sure fooled me there," Ryo said, an admiring tone in his voice. "I thought you were bawling your eyes out!"

Touma laughed, delighted. "I used to take theater, but I didn't like it. Don't get me wrong-- I was pretty good, but I just didn't like it enough to continue." He gestured with his hands. "Trust me about Seiji. He's too stubborn to listen, so it'll be a waste to try and tell him. But you wonder why he's such a kendo prodigy?"

"It's kind of easy to tell," Ryo pointed out. "He's been doing it for his whole life, he's got the perfect build for it, and he works really hard at it." It was true; Seiji spent nearly all his free time practicing kendo.

"And you know why else? He likes it. He really enjoys doing kendo." Touma was about to launch into the psychological concepts of Freud when Ryo shook his head. 

"Touma, I hope you understand, but I think that's where my understanding of the subject ends." 

Touma nodded agreeably. Instead of taking offense, he accepted it graciously. "Of course. I'm sorry."

"Nothing to apologize for," Ryo said with a wave of his hand. "If anything, I should be the one apologizing. My brain leaks information faster than my car does oil, so I'm sorry for not being able to understand you."

"That's because we're different," Touma ribbed him gently, reminding him of the words Ryo had spoken so recently. Ryo grinned, understanding.

"That still doesn't change the fact that there's no ice cream," he complained, switching the subject. "Shuu is such a glutton; everytime we buy anything, he eats it before any of us can even have a bite."

"But didn't we hide this ice cream from him?" Touma asked, peering into the freezer. 

"Come to think of it, we did…" Ryo looked puzzled. "And I hate to say it, but Shuu can be even more dense sometimes than I am…" 

"It was eaten recently," Touma added, having picked up the box and examined what little remained inside. "The ice cream isn't all sticky and congealed; it's still in aqueous form. Not only that, but as I recall, Shuu left this morning for a judo tournament. Unless he snuck back in to steal ice cream which he still had to search for and find, and on top of that have been incredibly lucky to have found it, I highly doubt that Shuu was the one who ate the ice cream." He set the box down. "It's not you and it's not me; I'm not fond of ice cream and you wouldn't have come down if you knew there wasn't."

"Shin? Nasuti?" Ryo suggested doubtfully. He shook his head. "Nah, Shin's too truthful for his own good. Plus, he can't lie anymore than he can drink upside down. And Nasuti doesn't like chocolate ice cream."

"Which leaves only one person, who is also a known glutton sometimes due to high metabolism, who loves chocolate, and who didn't even try to come down to get some ice cream for himself," Touma concluded.

The two looked at each other. "Seiji." They burst into laughter.

"So that's why the room smelled like chocolate!" Ryo exclaimed, trying to smother his laughter. He wasn't succeeding.

"You noticed, too?" Touma asked, managing to stifle his own chuckles.

"It's my room-- I should notice," Ryo retorted good-naturedly. "Oh, he's so dead! I'm going to make him march over to the super-market and buy more right now out of his own pocket! He owes us!"

"Matte." Touma's eyes twinkled with a mischevious light that Ryo had never seen before. "Let's get back at Seiji our own way, shall we?"

Ryo eyed him suspiciously. "What do you have in mind?" he asked cautiously.

"This." Touma whispered something in Ryo's ear. 

Ryo's grin grew bigger and purely evil as he listened. "Touma," he declared. "I am _so_ glad you're on my side."

* * * * *

The next day, around noon…

"Sure is quiet," Shin remarked, not looking up from his book. 

"Yeah," Touma said absently, sprawled out on the hammock and staring up at the sky. 

"Too quiet," Shuu muttered. He scratched his head absently and continued squinting at the play he was reading for school.

"Too boring," was Ryo's mumbled response. He had fallen asleep watching TV and was still in slumber-mode. He stumbled over and sat on the ground next to Touma's hammock. "Where's Seiji?"

"Where he's been this whole time," Shin said with an exasperated sigh. "In the shower."

"I swear, Seiji is a freaking _woman_ sometimes," Shuu said with a growl. "What does he do in the shower anyway? Massage his scalp for an hour?"

Ryo yawned. "Probably."

Touma shrugged. "Enjoy the afternoon while you can. It probably won't last," he offered cryptically.

As if on cue, a blood-curdling, high-pitched scream rang through the entire household, lasting a full ten seconds and causing everyone to cringe and clamp their hands onto their ears as hard and fast as they could while wishing desperately for earplugs.

After some time, Shin cautiously took his hands away from his ears and was enormously relieved to find that the sound had stopped. "What was that?" 

There was a pattering of feet, and a thoroughly horrifed Seiji-- clad only in a towel that was hastily wrapped around his waist-- came bursting through the doors. "WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!" he fairly shrieked in the same pitch as his earlier scream.

Shuu choked, then began to howl with laughter. Shin stared at Seiji, stupefied into shock. Ryo and Touma snickered knowingly. 

Their amusement didn't help the thoroughly-- and frantically-- incensed Seiji. "I asked a question!" he screamed. "Will somebody just answer the freaking thing?!"

"I don't know, Seiji," Ryo said, biting his tongue. "I think you look gorgeous with pink hair. You should keep it."

"Flamingo pink," Touma added with a most unhelpful grin.

"Flamingo pink…" Shuu repeated, then began to laugh again. "Seiji, the pink flamingo! Now all you need are feathers and a beak, you moron, and you'll really be a bird!"

"Shut up!" Seiji seethed. He pointed at Ryo. "You! I know you put the hair dye in my conditioner! Only you would have the guts to do that to me!"

"Correct," Ryo drawled laconically.

"You are so going to die…" Seiji started threateningly towards him despite Shin's pleading for him to calm down.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Touma interrupted. 

Seiji's jaw dropped in spite of his surprise. "You're in this too?!" He snorted. "I would have thought you'd be too--" 

"Wimpy?" Touma cut him off. "I told you, I'm not as fragile as you may think, Seiji. But anyway, you should certainly rethink this."

"Why's that?" Seiji's eyes narrowed.

"Because I know you have a date in an hour."

Seiji tossed his now-pink hair. "Big deal. I have dates all the time. Canceling one isn't going to matter."

"I don't think you'd want to cancel a date with Mishari Keya," Touma said smugly. Seiji's look turned murderous.

Shuu whistled. "Mishari Keya? You got a date with the beauty queen of Shichiban? The junior? You're one lucky boy, Seiji!"

"Man," Seiji corrected him with a glare. 

"Fine, man. Who looks like a washed-out Tenjou Utena." Shuu began cracking up at his own joke. Seiji spared him another glance, but didn't bother pursuing the argument. He had more pressing matters at hand.

"Alright, it doesn't matter that you infiltrated my private studies," he sniffed, trying to ignore Shuu's snickering. "I'll just beat the crap out of you, then call and tell Keya-san that I've got to cancel because of studying--"

"Sorry, Seiji. Keya's shopping until she meets you for the date at the park," Touma told him with a catlike grin. "You can't cancel. And she doesn't have a cell phone with her, either, and neither do her friends. Not only that, but none of us can drive except you, so you'd have to go the mall and tell her yourself."

Seiji was positively livid.

Touma's grin widened as he held up a small bottle filled with a pink substance. "But, if you do us a favor, we'll give you this."

"What is it?" Seiji asked suspiciously.

"It's thermomaximimal transitory conditioner with special effects."

"Shampoo to remove the dye," Ryo translated.

Seiji made a grab for it, keeping one hand gripping his towel. But Ryo was a martial artist too, and he restrained Seiji easily. Seiji was also hampered by the slick floor and ended up hanging onto Ryo to keep from sprawling out onto it. "Sorry, Seiji. But we're just getting back at you."

"For what?" Seiji snapped.

"Now, I don't think you're _that_ stupid," Touma said with a shrug, making the statement a veiled insult. "Face it, Seiji. If you just do us the favor, you'll get your hair back to normal, and you can go on your date as usual. Plus, it doesn't take long."

Seiji glanced around, looking for allies but knowing it was a lost cause. Shuu was watching with a way too eager look on his face. He made a note to himself to find a way to get back at Shuu later. 

"Well?" Ryo asked. Touma waved the bottle tantilizingly.

Seiji scowled, then finally grunted a sound of grudging defeat. "Fine. What do you want?"

"We want our ice cream replaced," Ryo said.

Seiji gave him a disbelieving glance. "That's it?"

Ryo snorted. "What do you think we are, stupid?" Seiji berated himself for asking such a stupid question. "Of course not. We want our ice cream-- now. From the supermarket. And we're not going with you-- you have to go get it by yourself."

Seiji stared at him. "Waiiitt a minute…can't I do it tonight?" he asked lightly. "It's almost time for my date with Keya-san."

"I called Keya-san this morning," Touma said with a smirk. "I moved your date back an hour. And yes, I moved your reservations at the restaurent too." Seiji was aching to kill Touma by now. 

"Go for it, Seiji," Ryo said with a clap on his blond-- well, pink-haired-- friend's back.

Seiji gave Ryo a panicked look as he and Touma began to shove him towards the door. "B-b-but…it's noon!" he stuttered. "And the supermarket's right next to the mall!"

"So?" Ryo asked innocently.

"There's the most people at the supermarket at noon! And the girls will see me there because that's where they buy snacks for after lunch!"

"Fine," Ryo said with a shrug. "Then you can go on your date with pink hair."

Seiji's face fell. "My reputation's going to be shot…" he moaned.

"No sympathy here," Touma said carelessly. "You could use an ego-popper, Seiji. It's too big to fit in this world."

"Oh shut up!" Seiji glared furiously at him, then Ryo. Finally, with a huff about stupid and smart people and how people were just stupid in general, he stomped his way upstairs. After a few minutes, keys in hand and dressed appropriately, a hat jammed on his head and pulled down so far it covered his ears entirly, he stormed off to the garage. They could hear him ranting until the car door slammed shut and the engine was fired.

"That was mean," Shin said. But he didn't sound very disapproving.

"Hey, we let him keep the hat," Ryo pointed out reasonably. "That's worth some brownie points." Shin only raised an eyebrow, but let a smile grace his lips ever so slightly.

"That was hecka good!" Shuu was fairly dancing with glee. "Seiji's going to remember this forever!" He stopped suddenly. "Hey, can I have some of your ice cream?"

Ryo and Touma sweatdropped. "Sure, I guess," Ryo said weakly. Shuu gave a thumbs up and bounded up the stairs to his room. Ryo watched him go. "There goes our ice cream," he said, unhappy. 

Touma shrugged and headed for the kitchen. He came back a few minutes later. "All set," he said with a conspiratory wink. Ryo stared at him, perplexed. "I called Seiji on the cell phone," Touma elaborated. "I told him to pick up a few extra boxes."

"But Seiji doesn't have a cell phone," Ryo said, knitting his eyebrows together in puzzlement.

Touma rolled his eyes. "I know that. I stuck mine in his car before he left. I think he almost crashed trying to pick it up when it started to ring. Seiji didn't notice it at all, even though I put it right next to him in the drink holders. Anyway, I told him that if he would get three or four extra cartons, we'd share with him too."

"Did he say yes?"

"Seiji's arrogent and idiotic, but he's still a guy," Touma said with an slight shrug. "He likes ice cream as much as we do. Of course he agreed to. And this way, he doesn't have to steal it anymore."

The grin reappeared on Ryo's face. "Touma, you're the best."

* * * * *

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Author's Notes: Yes, yes, they were mean to Seiji here…but it's for a reason…

Comments and feedback always appreciated. Ja ne! ^^  
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